A systematic analysis of the influence of prior social context on aggression and self-injury within analogue analysis assessments

Experimental analogue analyses are sometimes used to identify the operant function of aberrant behavior for individuals with developmental disabilities. These methods are proposed to be superior to other assessment techniques because they systematically control for the presence and absence of hypothesized maintaining contingencies within the analogue analysis. Analogue analyses are usually performed over a brief period of time with little reference to the broader social context within which they are conducted. Social interactions that a person experiences prior to an analogue analysis assessment might influence performance within the assessment. The authors examined the influence of prior social conditions on levels of aberrant behavior under analogue assessments with two individuals with severe developmental disabilities. Results indicated that prior social conditions significantly influenced analogue analysis results in idiosyncratic ways for both. These findings are discussed in terms of the need to examine broad contextual influences when conducting functional analyses of aberrant behavior.